Game of lies

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Samantha

The door slams against the wall, but I don't slow down. I make my way to the bathroom and the large, enclosed stall at the back. Breathing fast and ragged, I pace back and forth.

"Shit." Selena's voice filters through the thin wall.

"What the hell is going on?" Jake hisses. "I thought this was supposed to be Samy's birthday party and not some shitty get-together with the ex-con."

"Jake, will you shut up?"

He makes a frustrated sound. "What? I'm just telling it like it is. I'm not even sure who the biggest jerk is tonight after that little stunt his dad pulled with Zane. Although, did you see the guy Zane was with when we left? Does he look like that thing?"

Selena sighs. "What thing?"

"You know, Fantastic Four."

"Oh my God!" You mean Ben Grimm? His name is The Thing, not that thing.

"Whatever."

Their ridiculous argument distracts me for a moment, but then my thoughts intensify. Seeing Zane was bad enough, but what made it even worse was the text from Freddy I received a few minutes ago.

Did you like my surprise?

I need to get out of here. I need to get away from this place and all these people.

I pull my phone out of my purse and look at it as if I've been personally offended. What I wouldn't give to throw it away and flee the country right now, or at least block Freddy's number. But I can't do that, or bad things will happen to my friends. Freddy made that abundantly clear.

After taking a deep breath, I open my messages and text my driver, Darryl, to bring the car over. He tells me to meet him in the back in ten minutes.

Ten minutes. I can stay calm for that long. Hide here until I can make a beeline for the back exit, hopefully without running into anyone.

The door creaks outside and a new voice filters in.

"Is he okay?"

No, damn it. What's Tommy doing here? I don't need more people seeing my meltdown.

I sigh and leave the stall. "I'm fine, Tommy."

"Are you sure? You look a little green." Our friend checks me out and hands me a bottle of water.

"Thanks." A quick glance in the mirror confirms his statement. My skin does have a sickly glow. "I just have a little upset stomach."

"Sorry. Did you eat or drink anything bad?" He puts his hands in his pockets, relaxing to see I'm fine. His right cheek lifts with that sly grin I know so well. "Is there a punch at this party I should know about?"

Juke snarls. "Oh my God! We said we wouldn't talk about that punch again. I still think the idiots who spiked the whole bottle of vodka were trying to kill us all. Our parents were so pissed off when we got drunk at Samy's sweet 16 party." He laughs. "It's a wonder any of us remember that night."

Tommy laughs. "Only fragments."

"My God, you feel so good, Samy."

Images of him with his head between my legs before he climbed up my body and entered me come flooding back. The memories are a little fuzzy, but most of them are still there.

I shake the memory off. We made out once, and that was years ago. Well, at least this brief walk down memory lane distracted me for another two or three minutes.

It's almost time to escape this s**t show.

It's okay. Everything's okay. I'm going to be okay.

Yes, Zane's back, but I might not see him again.

I mean, there's no reason for us to run into each other. And if we happen to be going to the same parties, I can easily avoid it, right?

Besides, I'll be leaving next year once school's out anyway, and all this will be behind me.

I focus back on Tommy and the fact that he's wearing his crisp vest, his crisp white shirt, and his black slacks. Damn. I forgot he's working tonight.

"Tommy, come back out. I don't want you to get into trouble."

"Stop worrying about me. I just wanted to make sure you're okay." He runs a hand through his messy dark-blond hair. He must have done this a lot tonight. Waiting for rich people can have that effect. He heads for the door and looks over his shoulder at me. "See you Monday?"

I give him a small smile. "We're early, as usual."

He nods and leaves, and I catch Selena's eye in the mirror.

She shakes her head. "Don't give me that look. You know I couldn't stop him. He came in here like a knight in shining armor. Nothing and no one can stop him once he sets his sights on something."

"I just don't want to get him in trouble."

The corner of her mouth curls up. "I know, honey. But he's a big boy who can take care of himself." She winks at me. "A big, handsome boy."

"You're so mean." I grab my phone and check the time. "Darryl's leaving in two minutes. Are you staying or coming with me?"

Jake snorts. "Like you have to ask. Of course we're coming with you."

"Samantha." Selena's sudden, soft voice pulls my attention away from the screen.

She looks at me with furrowed eyebrows. "Are you okay?"

We both know I'm not, but I nod anyway.

"Sure. Well, it'll be okay, right? I just didn't expect to see Zane tonight, and it brought back a lot of memories, that's all."

The look he gives me says it all. He doesn't believe a single bit of the nonsense I just said, but luckily, he doesn't push it further.

The next morning, I wake up to a text from my dad.

Dad:

You have to be at the office by 10 a.m.

Yeah, right. I don't believe it. Whatever he wants can wait.

Me:

Sorry, I'm busy today.

Dad:

I wasn't asking, Samanta. Come by 10 or I'll cut off your money.

I'm still staring at the screen when another text comes in.

Dad:

All the money.

I want to strangle him.

Me:

I'll be there.